In case you missed it, after leading for three rounds, Tiger gave up a four shot lead and lost the Chevron World Challenge in a playoff to Graeme McDowell.
Thus ends an amazing year as Tiger failed to win a single tournament for the first time in his professional career. I honestly think we’ll see more of the same next year. He won’t go o-fer, but he’ll never be the Tiger of old.
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Graeme was amazing with the flat stick. A couple of years ago, however, the outcome would have been very different. Tiger would have widened the lead on Sunday as he played mistake free golf, and his competitors wilted away. Three years ago, that four stroke lead would have been six or more by the end.
He has lost his mojo. Tiger will win in the future, but he’s going to have to do it without the intimidation and luck he’s used to having.
I think the intimidation worked the other way. I think that Tiger after 3 putting earlier in the day watched Graeme clutch putt from 25 feet on the 18th (72nd) and basically give Tiger the finger (or the pump fist) when Tiger had just made that amazing approach to put it 2 feet out.
Then on the 73rd hole, Graeme just about blew the drive, then put the ball in the same spot, and make the same clutch putt for birdie. Tiger just couldn’t believe it. It threw him.
He watched Graeme putt that ball from 25 feet or so twice on the same line as his putt. His putt wasn’t that close, but really- Tiger 3 years ago would have made that putt 80% of the time without seeing the line – and this time he saw that line twice before he putted.
I read this headline on Facebook while I was watching today – around the time they were on 7 or 8. I thought I had ruined it for me, but I kept watching, and when 13 happened, I just expected Tiger to tailspin, and so when Graeme was in trouble on 17, I started wondering if this headline was just referring to #13 – and then Graeme held that at a bogey, and I didn’t know what to think. The last two putts of Graeme’s were stunning,
Tiger will win in 2011, but it won’t be a major. I wonder if Tiger may even play a 2nd tier tournament to play a weaker field and just get a win behind him.
So is McDowell playing in the PGA next year? At least that may make up a little for losing McIllroy to the European Tour.